


Intertwined

by KneeDeepInShippingHell



Category: Invader Zim
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Depression, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, I want a dib, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Self-Hatred, the tallest are jerks, vent fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-07
Updated: 2020-02-07
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:00:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22605103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KneeDeepInShippingHell/pseuds/KneeDeepInShippingHell
Summary: Someone is lying next to Zim.He can feel their warm breath on his cheek, their arms around his waist.It's comforting.Zim opens his eyes and turns his head to look at the sleeping figure.It's Dib._______Zim has a rough night. Luckily Dib is there comfort him.Title is from dodie's "Intertwined."
Relationships: Dib & Zim (Invader Zim), Dib/Zim (Invader Zim)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 127





	Intertwined

**Author's Note:**

> yes this is named after the dodie song. it's my fic and i get to choose the title!
> 
> this is sort of a vent fic, so I apologize if anyone seems out of character ^^;
> 
> Content warning for depression, self-hatred, and a brief mention of a failed suicide attempt. Stay safe <3
> 
> For the best experience, please read this while listening to "Intertwined", "Sick of Losing Soulmates", or "Ready Now"! They're all wonderful songs that give me ZaDr vibes ^-^

Someone is lying next to Zim.

He can feel their warm breath on his cheek, their arms around his waist.

It's comforting.

Zim opens his eyes and turns his head to look at the sleeping figure.

It's Dib.

Zim's first thought was to push the human away and start yelling until he wakes up. 

_ What happened?! Why are you here?! How did you get here?! _

But he doesn't.

He loves the feeling of being held.

More specifically, he loves the feeling of  _ Dib  _ holding him.

_ He loves Dib.  _

He knows he should be disgusted, that he  _ loves  _ Dib and  _ cares  _ about him. He's an Invader, he should be above this silly behavior!

A part of him feels ashamed, that something is wrong with him, that the Tallest were right, he's  _ defective _ .

Then it hits him. What had happened before all this, the reason why he's in this position to begin with.

_ That's right. The Tallest lied to you. Your mission was a lie. _

_ They hate you. _

____________

He remembers letting out an uneasy chuckle.  _ "T-this is a joke, right, my Tallest? Ha ha, very funny!" _

The way they looked at him, like he was a tiny pest and they were going to crush him.

_ "No, Zim. This isn't a joke. There never was a special mission."  _ spoke Red, and Purple snorted.

_ "Yeah, we just wanted to get rid of you! Why else haven't we visited you for years? We don't care, duh!" _ Purple continued to laugh, wiping tears from his eyes.

Red smirked as he watched Zim's face fall.  _ "We don't like you, Zim. We never did." _

He started shaking.  _ "You're lying!" _

_ "You IDIOT. How hard is it for you to get this through your stupid little head? You really are defective." _

The call ended abruptly, and Zim couldn't hold it in anymore.

Curling up and hugging his knees, he started to cry.

Things got a bit fuzzier after that; he remembers calling for Gir, asking him to go get Dib.

He cried until there weren't any tears left, and his head hurt and his spooch felt all twisted up.

Pathetic, defective little Zim. That's all he ever was to Red and Purple, and that's all he'll ever be.

____________

Dib came as quickly as he could.

In all his years of knowing Zim, he couldn't remember a time the Irken was hurting like this. The Florpus incident had nothing on this.

The Irken was passed out in the corner of the living room. Getting closer, Dib could see that Zim had attempted to remove his PAK multiple times. Thankfully, it was still on, and he was breathing just fine.

Dib didn't want to imagine what would have happened if Zim succeeded and he had come too late.

_ Don't think about it. He's okay, and that's what matters. _

He tapped Zim's shoulder, and the alien began to stir, slowly opening his eyes.

"You came…"

Dib gave a small smile. "Of course I did. You're my best friend." 

Years ago, Dib never could have imagined saying something like that, but it was true. Dib enjoyed Zim's company.

Even from the beginning, when they were at each other's throats, it had given Dib a rush of adrenaline he never felt before. 

Or now, where they had stopped fighting, and instead spent their time together on the couch watching Mysterious Mysteries, Gir asleep in Dib's lap, neither of them realizing that their fingers were intertwined.

Dib couldn't lie to himself anymore.

Zim was the most important person in his life, and he loved him.

____________

From there the two just sat and talked. Zim told Dib everything, and the human sat and listened, letting Zim rest his head on his shoulder.

When Zim started crying again, Dib hugged him tight, his hand rubbing circles into Zim's lower back.

Time passed quickly, and Dib grew tired, but he refused to leave Zim by himself, afraid he would try and hurt himself again. The Irken offered to let him stay in a little bedroom off to the side of the living room, and as Dib crawled into the bed, he felt a hand pulling on his shirt.

Zim was blushing, his eyes facing the ground. "Can I stay with you?"

"Of course."

Zim crawled into the bed, and before drifting off, Dib gently wrapped his arms around Zim, never wanting to let him go.

____________

In a quiet voice, Zim speaks. "Dib?"

Dib begins to wake up, still drowsy. "Mmm? What's up?"

"Thank you for taking care of me. I...love you."

Dib softly presses his lips to Zim's forehead. "I love you too, Zim."

**Author's Note:**

> i want a dib ;-;
> 
> Thanks for reading! Kudos and comments are very much appreciated, they make my day and I love hearing from you all <3


End file.
